Home appliance



Jan. 2, 1962 J. T. CURTIS 3,015,125

HOME APPLIANCE Filed Sept. 14, 1959 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 IN VEN TOR.

I W J" J. T. CURTIS HOME. APPLIANCE Jan. 2, 1962 2 Sheets-Sheet 2' Filed Sept. 14, 1959 JNVENTOR. m

3,015,125 HOME APPLEANCE John T. (Curtis, Hamilton, @hio, assignor to Whiripool Corporation, a corporation of Delaware Filed dept. 14, 1959, Ser. No. 839,660 4 Claims. (Cl. 16-82) This invention relates to door structures and more particularly to mechanisms for removably mounting the doors in home appliances such as ovens.

The instant invention comprehends a new and improved control means for use in a hinge mechanism such as that shown and described in copending John T. Doner application Serial No. 833,587, filed August 13, 1959, and assigned to the assignee of this application.

More specifically, the hinge mechanism provides an improved removable mounting of an oven door on the front of an oven. The mechanism includes support means on the oven for removably pivotally mounting the door and a roller mounted in the oven side wall. A lever is pivotally mounted on the door and a spring interconnects the lever and the door for simultaneously biasing the door against the support means and the lever against the roller. The control of the instant invention is operable selectively to hold the lever against the bias of the spring means and thereby eliminate the bias of the door against the support means to facilitate manual I separation of the door from the support means.

Thus, one feature of the instant invention is the provision of a new and improved control in a hinge mechanism of the character described.

Another feature of the invention is to provide such a control including catch means on the lever and stop means movably mounted within the door.

A further feature of the invention is to provide such a control including means for biasing the stop means to a disassociated relationship with the catch means.

Still another feature is the provision of such a control wherein the stop means is pivotally connected to the door.

A still further feature is the provision of such a control wherein the catch means projects radially of the axis of pivoting of the lever and the stop means is movable radially of that axis to provide the selective engagement of the stop means with the catch means.

Yet another feature is the provision of such a control wherein the catch means comprises a first shoulder on the lever and the stop means includes a second shoulder selectively disassociated from the lever to permit the biasing of the door against the support means and the lever against the roller and engageable with the first shoulder to hold the lever against the bias of the spring means.

Another feature of the invention is the provision of such a control including means for automatically limiting the movement of the stop means to a preselected position to engage the catch means.

Other features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a fragmentary, isometric view of a range oven having a door pivotally mounted on the wall of the oven by a hinge mechanism controlled by means embodying the invention.

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical section taken substantially along the line 22 of FIG- URE 1.

FIGURE 3 is a fragmentary, horizontal section taken substantially along the line 33 of FIGURE 2.

FIGURE 4 is a vertical section generally similar to t that of FIGURE 2 but with the door disassociated from the support means.

Patented den. 2., 15352 In the illustrative embodiment of the invention, as disclosed in the drawings, a door member it) is pivotally mounted adjacent the opening 11 in the front wall 12 of a range oven 13 by a hinge mechanism generally designated 14. Associated with the hinge mechanism 1% is a control means generally designated 15 which is selectively operable to arrange the hinge mechanism 14 to permit manual separation of the door from oven portion 13 when desired. As shown in FIGURE 1, two such hinge mechanisms 14 are provided. A control means 25 is associated with each hinge mechanism; each of the pairs of hinge mechanisms 14 and control means 15 are reversely identical and the following detailed description, which is limited to the right-hand hinge mechanism and control means, is applicable similarly to the lefthand hinge mechanism and control means.

Referring now more specifically to FIGURES 2 through 4, door it includes an outer panel 16 and an inher panel 17 defining a cavity l8 therebetween. At the lower end of door it), outer panel 16 is turned inwardly to form an end wall 19 and inner panel 17 is turned inwardly to form an end wall 2%) inwardly juxtaposed to end wall 19. As shown in FIGURE 3, at the side of the door, outer panel 16 is turned to form a side wall 21 and inner panel 1'? is turned to form a side wall 22 juxtaposed inwardly to side wall 21.

Door in is pivotally mounted at its lower end adjacent oven front wall 12 on a pair of support means comprising brackets 23 each having a first portion 24 secured to wall 12 and a second portion 25 extending in a vertical plane outwardly from wall i2 and through aligned vertical slots 26 and 27 in end walls It) and 20 respectively. At its outer end, bracket portion 25 is provided with an outwardly and upwardly opening slot or recess 28 receiving a hinge pin 2% carried by a U-shaped bracket 34) secured to inner door panel 17 adjacent slot 27. The outboard end 31 of pin 29 is received in a complementary recess 32 in an inner wall 33 of a downwardly opening box-like combined guide and limit stop member 34 secured to the inner surface of inner panel It? in juxtaposition to inner panel side wall 22 and inner panel end wall 23*.

Within guide member 34 is disposed a spring 35 having one end 36 pivotally connected to one end 37 of a lever 33 comprising a quadrant arm extending through an elongated opening 39 in the top wall it of guide member 34 and a corresponding opening 41 in the inner panel 17. The opposite end 42 of spring 35 is secured to end wall 43 of guide member 34 adjacent inner panel end wall it? by an exteriorly threaded plug 44- threaded into the end of the spring and secured to cover end wall 43 and inner panel end wall 29 by a screw 45.

Lever 38 is pivotally mounted on a pin 46 carried by a bifurcated support 47 secured to the inner surface of guide member wall 4d and extending through openings 39 and d1. Extending from pin as oppositely to lever end 37 is an elongated lever end 48 extending arcuately approximately The inner surface 43' of lever end 43 rides against a reaction means comprising a roller 5% mounted within the side wall of oven portion 13 immediately behind the oven front wall 12. Lever portion 48 is provided with an inturned end 51 for limiting the maximum opening of door iii, and shoulders 52 and 53 for controlling the movement of the door at the fully closed position (as seen in dotted lines in FIGURE 2).

Spring 35 normally urges surface 49 of lever 38 against roller fit? and the reaction force of the spring on the lower end of door it) urges hinge pin 29 into a fully seated disposition within recess 28 of bracket 23.

To permit removal of door iii when desired, control means 15 is manually operated to disable spring 35 and prevent the forcible urging of hinge pin 29 into a bracket recess 23. Control means positioned substantially entirely within door It) includes a stop bar or lever 5 having a first end portion 55 provided with a push button 5o extending through an opening 75 in inner panel 17. The opposite end 57 of the stop bar is provided with a rectangular opening 58 defining at its outer end a shoulder 59. Stop bar end 57 is joined to end 55 by an angle connection 60 permitting push button 55 to be spaced from door side walls 21 and 22. At the juncture 61 of angle connection 64} and end 55, the stop bar 54 is angled to permit end 55 to extend substantially parallel to inner panel 17 while disposing the opposite end substantially intermediate inner panel 17 and outer panel 16. top bar portion 57 is provided with a pair of dependmg flanges 62 which are adjacent guide member side walls 33 and 63 respectively. A pivot pin es is secured to guide side Walls 33 and 63 and extends through suit able openings 65 in flanges 62 to permit pivotal move ment of stop bar 54 thereon.

A coil spring 66 is mounted on pin as between flanges 62 and has one end 57 engaging the bottom 68 of guide Wall 33 and an opposite end 69 hearing against stop bar 54 at a point between flanges 62 and push button 56.

Thus, spring so biases the stop bar 54 about the pivoted axis of pin 64 to the full line position of FIGURE 2 wherein push button 56 projects through panel opening 57 and shoulder 59 at the opposite end of the stop bar is spaced substantially from lever end 37. Lever end 37 is provided with a projecting portion 76; defining a shoulder '71 extending generally radially to the axis of lever pivot pin 46 and facing toward spring 35. Lower end 37 is further provided with a rounded guide surface 72 which extends arcuately away from shoulder 71.

The operation of control means 15 to permit removal of door it) from oven portion 13 is as follows. With door it arranged in the fully open position, as shown in full lines in FIGURE 2, each push button 55 is manually depressed to pivot stop bar 54 about pivot pin 64 until the shoulder 59 of stop bar end 57 abuts guide suriface 72 of the lever end 37 (as shown in dotted lines in .EEGURE 2). Door lltl is then pivoted on brackets 23 toward the closed position. During this movement, levers 3% are pivoted by the action of springs 36 in a counterclockwise direction as seen in FIGURE 2 until shoulder 71 of each lever end 37 abuts shoulder 59 of the corresponding stop bar 54-. At this point, the operator may release the push buttons 56 as the springs retain lever shoulders 71 against stop bar shoulders 59 g ith suificient force to resist the pivotal urging of springs Further pivotal movement of door lltl toward the closed position (the dotted line position of FIGURE 2) now causes levers 38 to move away from rollers 5d (see FIGURE 4) as further pivotal movement of the levers about the axis of pins 46 is prevented one to the disabling of springs 35 by the holding actions of the stop bars 54 on the catch means defined by shoulders 71 of the lever ends 37. When the door has been pivoted to approximately the position of FIGURE 4, it may be lifted to remove hinge pins 29 from recesses 23 of the brackets 23. As it is no longer necessary to maintain the manual depression of push buttons 56, the door handle (not shown) normally positioned at the upper end of the door may be grasped during this step, if desired, thereby facilitating removal of the door.

To reinstall door It? on oven portion 13, a reversal of the above described steps is effected. Thus, the lower end of the door is disposed adjacent brackets 23 and pins 29 moved into the bracket recesses 23 until fully seated therein. The door is their allowed to pivot; downwardly until levers 3S engage rollers 50, whereupon further downward pivoting of the door causes the levers 38 to pivot in a clockwise direction as seen in FIGURE 2 to move shoulders 71 away from stop bar shoulders 5h 4 thereby releasing the stop bars and permitting springs 66 to return the stop bars to the full line positions of FIG- URE 2. Opening and closing of door 13 may now be effected in the conventional manner, stop bars 54 being disassociated from levers 38 as long as push buttons 56 remain undepressed.

As the control means are disposed substantially fully Within the door it}, inadvertent operation of the control means is effectively precluded and the elements thereof are protected against damage and deposition of dirt or food materials thereon. The manipulation of push but tons as to disable springs 35 and thereby permit removal of door it} from oven 13 may be readily effected. The automatic locking of the control means in the springs disabling positions during the final steps of the removal operation further facilitates the door removal. Further, the automatic restoration of the control means to the non-disabling positions by the simple expedient of pivoting the door to the fully open position upon reinstallation makes such reinstallation extremely simple.

While I have shown and described one embodiment of: my invention, it is to be understood that it is capable of many modifications. Changes, therefore, in the con struction and arrangement may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

The embodiment of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed is defined as follows:

1. In a hinge mechanism adapted to support a member including reaction means, support means, a lever engageable with said reaction means, said member being removably pivotally mounted on said support means, means pivotally mounting said lever on said member, and spring means interconnecting said lever and said member for simultaneously biasing said member against said support means and said lever against said reaction means, a control comprising: catch means on said lever; stop means movably mounted on said member, said stop means being selectively disassociated from said catch means to permit said biasing and engageable with said catch means to hold said lever against the bias of said spring means and thereby eliminate the bias of said member against said support means for facilitating manual separation of said member from said support means; and means continu ously urging said stop means toward a position away from engagement with said catch means even when said stop means and catch means are engaged, the engagement of said stop means and catch means serving to resist said urging means.

2. In a hinge mechanism adapted to support a member including reaction means, support means, a lever engageable with said reaction means, said member being removably pivotally mounted on said support means and having an interior, means pivotally mounting said lever on said member, and spring means interconnecting said lever and said member for simultaneously biasing said member against said support means and said lever against said reaction means, a control comprising: catch means on said lever in the interior of said member; and stop means movably mounted on the interior of said member, said stop means being accessible eXteriorly of said member for selective disassociation from said catch means to permit said biasing and engagement with said catch means to hold said lever against the bias of said spring means and thereby eliminate the bias of said member against said support means for facilitating manual separation of said member from said support means.

3. In a hinge mechanism adapted to support a member including reaction means, support means, a lever engageable with said reaction means, said member being removably pivotally mounted on said support means and having an interior, means pivotally mounting said lever on said member, and spring means interconnecting said lever and said member for simultaneously biasing said member against said support means and said lever against said reaction means, a control comprising: catch means on said lever and in said interior projecting radially of the axis of pivoting thereof; and stop means movably mounted in said interior, said stop means being accessible exteriorly of said member and movable substantially radially of said axis of pivoting of said lever for selective engagement with said catch means to hold said lever against the bias of said spring means and thereby eliminate the bias of said member against said support means for facilitating manual separation of said member from said support means.

4. In a hinge mechanism adapted to support a member including reaction means, support means, a lever engageable With said reaction means, said member being removably pivotally mounted on said support means and having an interior, means pivotally mounting said lever on said member, and spring means interconnecting said lever and said member for simultaneously biasing said member against said support means and said lever against said reaction means, a control comprising: a first shoulder on said lever in said interior; and stop means movably mounted in said interior and accessible on the exterior of said member, the stop means having a second shoulder selectively disassociated from said first shoulder to permit said biasing and engageable with said first shoulder to hold said lever against the bias of said spring means and thereby eliminate the bias of said member against said support means for facilitating manual separation of said member from said support means.

References {Iiterl in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,721,547 Pollock Oct. 25, 1955 

